I have been following a friend (and old client) of mine on Instagram and was pleased to see her posting videos of her working out at the gym during her pregnancy. It’s so refreshing to see people embracing fitness during their pregnancy and it’s something I really endorsed when I was expecting. All too often people are told to take it easy when they fall pregnant, like it’s some form of illness. In fact to this day I still remember being turned away from some fitness classes on account of my pregnancy. How very bizarre!
Anyway, I thought I would do a short interview with her and find out about how her pregnancy fitness regime was going and get her opinion on working out whilst expecting.
So let me introduce you to Paula Bellostas Muguerza who is currently 21 weeks pregnant. Paula tell me, have you been working out during the whole of your pregnancy?
I didn’t do proper workouts between finding out I was pregnant and 12 weeks as I was a bit unnecessarily paranoid 🙂 No matter how much I was reassured by everyone, I was a little on the high-risk because of a blood clotting disorder that had been an issue in the past so I substituted the gym with really long walks. You’d literally find me walking everywhere and clocking well over those 10,000 steps a day. I picked back up as soon as everything came back fine on the 12 week scan. I returned to the gym under the supervision of my PT who adjusted my program to my pregnancy and my goal to arrive at birth as fit and strong as possible to help with labour and recovery. Exercise was a big part of my life before getting pregnant. I used to workout 3-4 times a day doing a mixture of HIIT, strongman bootcamp and personal training sessions. It has always helped me feel healthy both physically and mentally. This is even more important while growing a baby, so it was natural for me to continue.
What kind of fitness do you like doing?
Definitely gym, although I’m now starting to build yoga in to help with those back aches and learning proper breathing techniques in preparation for labour.
What are your 3 top moves do at the gym?
Squats, deadlifts and hip thrusts – all these are compound moves which are helping me maintain a strong core as well as strengthening my hips and glutes which carry a lot of the weight of the baby.
Love all three of these moves. For anyone reading this who isn’t sure how to do these, check out a recent blog here on how to exercise in your living room. So how does working out make you feel?
The endorphin high post workout is even bigger now that I’m pregnant, so I feel ready to take on the world whenever I step out of the gym! It also makes me feel like I’m doing the right thing for the baby by staying healthy and hopefully avoiding things like gestational diabetes.
How long will your workout session last on average?
About 1h15′ if with the PT, 1h30′ if on my own as it takes me longer to do transitions with the equipment. Then bootcamp and yoga classes are about 1h.
Will you work out up until your due date if you can?
Most definitely unless I’m told I can’t!
Do you follow any special blogs, fitness Instagramers, or online videos for inspiration? I’m always looking to follow new people.
I follow Emily Skye, Alexandra Bring and Victoria Tornegren who have been working out through their pregnancies and are already back into it only a few short weeks after giving birth!
Cool thanks, I will tag them in the post for my readers to follow too. What’s the best thing about working out for you?
Feeling strong both mentally and physically is the best thing I get from working out
Any other points you want to make Paula?
There are a few pregnant women in my office and they all think I’m crazy for lifting weights or cycling round London on a Boris bike. I understand that we need to be more careful during these months as we have precious cargo on board, but for me working out, has not only demonstrated health benefits, it really makes me feel “pregnant not powerless” which is a critical thing for me to ensure I remain me and not just become all about the pregnancy and then subsequently all about the baby!
OMG, I love this…. “Pregnant, not powerless”. What a strong and empowering phrase for all those expecting. Thank you Paula, I’m definitely going to be using that one in the future. And thank you for letting me interview you. Keep up the fitness and good luck for the rest of your pregnancy.
Those Instagram peeps Paula mentioned above are:
https://www.instagram.com/emilyskyefit/?hl=en
PitterPatterPither 